The question now is if the proposal is enough to placate the administration of Gov. Chris Christie, who has long said a takeover is the best way for the distressed seaside gambling resort to avoid bankruptcy.

A bitterly divided city council voted 5-3-1 at a special meeting Monday night to approve the plan, which includes 100 job cuts, a tax settlement with the resort's most successful casino, an early retirement plan for municipal workers, and the sale of the city's former municipal airport, among other cost-saving measures.

Mayor Don Guardian said the proposal would cut the city's budget by $55 million by 2021, without raising taxes on residents over the next five years.

"There is no doubt that this is the way forward for Atlantic City's future," said Guardian, a Republican.

Christie's administration now has until next Tuesday, Nov. 1, to decide whether to accept or deny the plan. If it's the latter, the state can then take over key functions of the city's government.

Tammori Petty, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Community Affairs -- which will have the final say -- denied rumors that a takeover is inevitable.

"We emphatically and categorically reject any implication that a decision regarding the city's plan has been predetermined," Petty said. "The department is prepared to review the plan in its entirety and full context before any decision is made."

The state Assembly's judiciary committee is slated to hold a hearing on the plan Wednesday morning in Trenton.

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, who joined Christie in pushing for a a takeover for months, said Monday he had not yet seen the city's proposal.

"The last thing the state wants to do is take over the city," Sweeney (D-Gloucester) told NJ Advance Media. "Hopefully, they've come up with a real plan that's going to work."

The plan includes:

* A centerpiece proposal to sell Bader Field, the city's former municipal airport, to the city's Municipal Utilities Authority, an independent government agency funded by ratepayers. The authority has agreed to borrow $110 million to buy the 142-acre land, though the sale is subject to state approval. The money is designed to help the city pay down its $500 million in debt.

* A proposed settlement with Borgata in which the city will pay $103 million of the $150 million in tax refunds the city owes the casino. The casino has not yet agreed to the deal. Part of the city's debt has been caused by successful tax appeals from casinos that have lost tens of millions of dollars as the city's gambling market has shrunk over the last few years.

* A reduction in the city's full-time workforce from 965 to 865 by transferring some jobs to Atlantic County, bidding out some services, and offering early retirement packages. It is unclear how many layoffs would be needed. The city has already cut 358 full-time and part-time jobs since 2013.

* Renegotiated labor contracts that include no pay increases, a cheaper medical plan, cuts in overtime, and more.

* State aid to balance the city budget.

The city hired three firms to help draft the proposal.

"The state asked us to make tough decisions," City Council President Marty Small told NJ Advance Media. "We made the tough decisions."

Once the East Coast's gambling hub, Atlantic City has seen five casinos close in recent years, causing its tax base to crater and blowing a $100 million deficit in the city budget.

But state and local officials bickered for more than a year about how to prevent bankruptcy. Christie, a Republican, argued that despite the casino industry's downturn, city leaders didn't do enough to curb spending. Meanwhile, some leaders in the heavily Democratic city accused Christie of trying to strip the local government of autonomy.

Eventually, Christie signed a rescue package in May that gave the city 150 days to formulate the five-year plan or face a takeover. The state also gave the city a $73 million loan.

State Sen. Jim Whelan said he's a fan of the city's early-retirement proposal but isn't fond of the Bader Field sale.

"I just scratch my head over it," said Whelan (D-Atlantic), a former mayor. "There are an awful lot of questions that need to be answered."